Editorial | Public servants, personal preserve

In recent years, the public has endured an ongoing display of excess, personal entitlement and flat-out misbehavior among some officials who treat public office as a personal playground.

Recent examples include former Agriculture Commissioner and basketball hero Richie Farmer, who used his office as a personal service and supply agency, and the state legislature itself where former state Rep. John Arnold allegedly groped, grabbed and propositioned female staffers in climate that appears have been, um, conducive to such behavior.

Now it appears that similar problems are endemic at the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, where some officials appear to have used the independent agency meant to manage public hunting, fishing, wildlife and conservation as their personal preserve.

Alleged abuses at the department are outlined in civil administrative complaints filed Monday by the state Executive Branch Ethics Commission against two former top officials and two other employees, The Courier-Journal's Mike Wynn reported Tuesday.

They range from the boorish to the bizarre.

The boorish category includes alleged sexual harassment of female workers by former assistant division director Scott King, who, the complaint says, urged female staffers to wear short skirts and high heels, asked one worker to show him her breasts, and used staff meetings to point out to females what he and other male supervisors admired most about their bodies.

The bizarre allegations include former Commissioner Jonathan Gassett using the office FedEx account to ship the skin of an alligator he killed to a Georgia taxidermist and also, John Akers, a former maintenance shop worker, using seized deer antlers that were supposed to be destroyed to make "turkey calls, coat racks, furniture and various items using the department's facilities and equipment," the complaint said.

Other allegations are more serious, including the finding that Mr. Gassett used his position to obtain free guest passes from the Kentucky State Police to the Kentucky Derby, "passes that are not made available by KSP to the general public," the complaint notes.

It also says that Mr. Gassett obtained 15 prints of artwork created by the department for a fundraiser without paying for them and helped one of his hunting buddies who owns a communication business get into to a meeting with state police officials to discuss updating radio equipment.

Some allegations include amazingly petty demands by Mr. Gassett, such as sending department employees to inspect a home he planned to buy or to pump out his flooded basement.

The agency already has been rocked by charges of poor management, cronyism and self-dealing (rigging drawings for prime hunting rights, making free use of department equipment and supplies, doling out free fish to stock ponds of a select few).

The public needs some assurance this behavior isn't an ongoing course of conduct in Frankfort.

The fish and wildlife department is unusual in that it reports to a board whose members represent nine regions of Kentucky. It is funded through hunting and fishing license fees; board members are nominated by citizens and appointed by the governor.

The board chooses the commissioner. In fact, they are seeking one now after Mr. Gassett made a hasty exit last year amid an inspector general's audit and questions about travel expenses.

Gov. Steve Beshear needs to determine whether the current board members he appointed are qualified to hire a commissioner and make sure the department gets the strong leadership it obviously needs.

Louisville, Kentucky • Southern Indiana

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Editorial | Public servants, personal preserve

In recent years, the public has endured an ongoing display of excess, personal entitlement and flat-out misbehavior among some Kentucky officials who treat public office as a personal playground. Now